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Aeolic hendecasyllable

Meter
Pronunciation

Understanding ARPABET Pronunciation

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The pronunciation guide uses the ARPABET phonetic system—the same system used in speech recognition and text-to-speech applications.

Vowel Examples:
AE1 = cat, bat
EH1 = bed, head
IY1 = see, me
OW1 = go, boat
UW1 = boot, do
Stress Numbers:
0 = no stress (unstressed)
1 = primary stress (loud)
2 = secondary stress (medium)
Example:
AH0 TH IY1 N AH0
= a-THEE-na (Athena)

The stressed syllable (marked with 1) is pronounced louder and clearer than others.

Quick Definition

An eleven-syllable Aeolic meter, typically structured as two trochees, a dactyl, and two more trochees, foundational in Sapphic stanzas.

Detailed Definition
Aeolic hendecasyllable is an eleven-syllable line used in Aeolic poetry, particularly by Sappho, structured with a specific arrangement of long and short syllables (e.g., trochee + dactyl + trochee + spondee); it creates a flowing, song-like rhythm central to ancient Greek lyric.
Example
Example in poetry:
An Aeolic hendecasyllable is an 11-syllable line used by Sappho and Catullus; Catullus 54 begins: “Phaselus ille, quem videtis, hospites,” and in English imitation: “O gentle breeze that stirs the olive trees.”
Additional Notes
11-syllable Aeolic line. Also called "Sapphic hendecasyllable." Core line of Sapphic stanza. Pattern: ¯ ˘ | ¯ ¯ | ¯ ˘ ˘ | ¯ ˘ | ¯ ˘. See: Sapphic stanza.
Also Known As
Aeolic eleven-syllable Sapphic hendecasyllable Greek eleven-syllable
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